Powdered Alcohol is Approved for Sale in the US (Again)

Last year, a form of powdered alcohol called Palcohol was cleared for sale in the United States — and then immediately banned again by the US Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. Now, it's perfectly legal once more.

The Associated Press reports that powdered alcohol has regained approval by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. According to a Bureau spokesperson, the original U-turn (which claimed that the first approval was "made in error") was carried out over concerns that Palcohol's labels didn't accurately reflect the content of the product. Now, those issues have apparently been resolved, making four varieties of Palcohol legal once more in the eyes of the Bureau. "Potential for abuse isn't grounds for us to deny a label," the spokesperson said to Associated Press.

On the Palcohol website, its is explained that it hopes to distribute the product soon. "It will take a while but hopefully it will be available this summer," wrote Palcohol's inventor, Mark Phillips. The powder, available in a range of flavours, is around 50 per cent alcohol by weight and between 12 and 60 per cent alcohol by volume. According to its manufacturers, about a half cup of the stuff is equivalent to one drink.

Such aspirations to sell wont necessarily mean you can freely buy powdered alcohol, though. Individual States, after all, can regulate the sale of alcohol within their own borders — and many are concerned over the effects powdered alcohol may have on their populations. Indeed, several are already planning to ban products like Palcohol, and Colorado has already advanced legislation to prevent its sale.